CULTURAL

COHESIVENESS
BY: MISS CHERISSA MAE L. PAGSALIGAN
MAED - HISTORY
 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL COHESIVENESS

• Social cohesion is commonly referred to as the glue that holds society together. It
is the “trusting network of relationships and shared values and norms of residents
in A neighborhood” that allow members to achieve shared well-being. Cohesive
societies are built on communities that protect people against risk, foster trust,
and ultimately promote community health. Studies show that community social
cohesion can help improve family health, safety, and overall well-being while
decreasing stress poverty, and even racism. Alternatively, poor social cohesion
leads to poor childhood development, higher rates of chronic disease, and
increased rates of mental health.
 CULTURE AND INCLUSIVE SOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT
• The issue of socially inclusive development is an area where the need
for culture-aware policies is widely acknowledged. People are able to
define themselves in society and more fully realize their aspirations
when respect for cultural diversity is guaranteed. Of particular
significance in this regard is the role that culture plays in enlarging
people’s capabilities to “lead the lives they have reason to value”
through full participation in cultural life and access to cultural assets
and resources in all their diversity.
 Among the most important ways in which culture
contributes to socially inclusive development are the
following:
• Guaranteeing the freedom of people to be and to live what they choose, To define
themselves in society and more fully realize their aspirations;
• Providing a sense of belonging, of being part of a community, and of maintaining close
links to the roots and land with which many people identify;
• Fostering an environment that is conducive to tolerance and mutual understanding and
where there is mutual trust, diversity is acknowledged and respected, and minorities are
included, leading to more stable and resilient societies
• Acting as a common good to be shared and protected and
providing an ideal “entry point” for social engagement and
cooperation, helping to develop initiatives that bring people
together around shared interests, strengthening bonds and
increasing the social capital of a community;
• Ensuring a deep connection with a major source of learning,
inspiration and accomplishment;
• Offering the pleasure of living in a pleasant environment and on
a human scale.
 RESPECTING CULTURAL DIVERSITY FOSTERS
SOCIAL INCLUSION
• “An inclusive society is defined as a society for all, in which every
individual has an active role to play. Such a society is based on
fundamental values of equity, equality, social justice, and human
rights and freedoms, as well as on the principles of tolerance and
embracing diversity. An inclusive society should also be equipped
with appropriate mechanisms that enable all its citizens to participate
in the decision-making processes that affect their lives, and ultimately
shape their common future.”
• Yet, cultural diversity is still too often viewed as leading to
the exclusion of minorities. It is therefore important for
projects in this area to follow culturally sensitive approaches
from their inception.
 CULTURE AND EDUCATION
• It is important to stress how integrating culture into educational
policies and curricula can enhance their effectiveness. The way
people learn and transmit knowledge is very different depending on
their geographical and historical backgrounds. As a result,
educational strategies that are responsive to local cultures, contexts
and needs and that take into account mother tongue and local
languages and are designed in cooperation with the communities
concerned have been found to achieve the most effective results.
• Moreover, education is fundamentally a matter of transmitting
knowledge, skills and values. It is thus a major vehicle for the
safeguarding and sharing of culture, in the larger anthropological
sense of the word. There is great potential for educational curricula to
promote understanding, tolerance, diversity, human rights and
democracy, in order to foster socially cohesive societies. Activities
such as arts education conceived in the broadest sense can also
heighten learning and make it more enjoyable, as well as develop
freedom of expression.
THANK YOU